Household Tips

There’s nothing worse than opening the lid of a jar of honey only to find it’s full of ants. Sometimes there’s a telltale line of marching black soldiers leading right to your kitchen, other times it seems like they came from nowhere. Either way, you know you’re in for a battle.

Here are 5 easy ways to help you win—and keep those awful ants out of your cupboard for good.

1. FIND THEIR ENTRY POINT
The easiest cure is often prevention and that’s no different when it comes to ants. If you can identify how they are getting into your house (think door jambs, window cracks) then you should be able to figure out how to get them out. Sprinkling caulk on entry points is a common method of deterring ants. However, for a more natural approach you can try spreading coffee grinds or even drawing across the entry point with a line of chalk.

2. CLEAN WITH VINEGAR
Ditch the chemical options and opt to clean your kitchen with a spray bottle filled with a 50/50 vinegar solution instead. Not only is it a great way to naturally keep your home clean and germ-free, the scent also helps to eliminate ant trails and act as a boundary deterrent. Win-win!

3. TRY ESSENTIAL OILS
Both peppermint oil and lemon oil have been shown to deter ant infestations. Whilst we love the aroma, it seems that those pesky little insects can’t stand it and tend to stay away. Consider using a damp cloth with a few drops of essential oils on it to wipe over your cupboards and bench tops. You’ll be left with a fresh, clean and ant-free kitchen!

4. THROW FOOD SCRAPS AWAY
Your bin doesn’t need to be overflowing or your bench full of last night’s dinner prep to lure an ant colony in for a feast. Unfortunately, even the tiniest crumb can act as a lure to ants on the prowl. If you’ve been battling a recurring ant infestation, cleaning as you go and keeping on top of kitchen mess can make a big difference. So, make sure your kids put their breadboard in the dishwasher and give the bench a wipe down after their breakfast each morning. Logic dictates that if there’s no food to be found, your house will be of little interest to hungry insects.

5. CONSIDER FOOD STORAGE
If you still can’t keep ants out of the cupboard, it might be time to think about how you are storing your food. Do you have appealing, sugary items such as honey and golden syrup sitting out on the shelf? Placing condiments and treacle into a sealed container can drastically reduce an ant problem (and save your morning crumpet). Use your ant infestation as an excuse to give your pantry a mini-makeover by reordering shelves and placing any open food stuffs into sealed containers. Not only will you feel more organised, by the end of the exercise you’ll be blissfully ant-free!

While some pests can still come into your home even if it is really clean like bed bugs but in most cases, a great defence to avoiding them is by just cleaning your home. You may just have to contact a pest control expert as a last resort if your pest problem persists.

Reason to properly clean your home

Insects have fewer places to hide in. if your basement has a lot of cluttered corners, there is a high chance for pests to live there. Rodents, spiders, and a lot of different bugs will find your dark and cluttered basement a perfect place for them. Avoid storing loose items and start organizing them. Do not forget your yard and cut back vegetation around your home as pests can easily find a place there.

Get rid of their food sources. Pests can easily find your home a suitable place to live in if there is an available food source always waiting for them. Ants are mostly attracted to any food supply they can find in your home. During your cleaning session, better get rid of expired items. When it comes to staple items such as cereal, flour, sugar and the likes, use plastic containers with lids to protect and store them better.

Don’t give them free water. If pests have a suitable place to get water and moisture, they will stay in your home and you may just have to deal with them as an infestation is on the way. Check for potential spots where moisture can build up which will mostly include your plumbing fixtures.

The best and most effective to get rid of bed bugs right away is to contact a pest control expert right away since time is of the essence when it comes to this bug. Bed bugs are really difficult to remove and simply washing your infested bedding will not do the trick. However, you can prepare the infested area and eradicate a couple of these pests by simply doing the following:

Laundry your bedding. If you find that your mattress and bedding have dark reddish spots or smears and find moulted skins, it may be a sign that your bed is already infested with bed bugs. If this is the case, remove your bedding right away and wash it at a temperature of at least 120 degrees. The hot water setting of your washing machine can help you kill most of those bugs out.

Vacuum and seal. You will also need to vacuum the mattress, the bed frame, under the bed, along the baseboards, and even the headboards. Be very thorough and do not ignore the cracks and crevices you find since bed bugs can easily live there. Dispose of the vacuum bag once done outside the trash receptacle. Once done, wrap the mattress and even the box spring in a specially made bed bug encasements. Any living bug that is still within the mattress will die over time.

Contact your pest control specialist. The tips given above may just be a temporary solution as these insects are prolific breeders that are difficult to eliminate. So, if you have bed bugs, contact a pest control specialist as they have a customized solution to get rid of these pests once and for all.

There are ways that you can repel ants the natural way. If you think it is not yet time to contact a pest control specialist, then you can consider removing them on your own. Simple methods of removing them will just need a couple of regular household items. The great thing about this method is that it is environmentally friendly.

Citrus. With the use of orange peels mixed with water, spray the solution outside of your home to prevent ants from coming in. You can also use orange peels and place them around the patio to deter from getting in.

Red peppers. While there are readily available red pepper sprays in hardware stores and garden stores, you can create your own red pepper extracts as they are more natural. You can also purchase a more natural alternative organic sprays and powders that are available at garden centres.

If you want to create your own red chili pepper spray, just chopped ½ cup red chili peppers and 2 cups water in a blender. Strain the process chili after then place the pepper liquid into a spray bottle. You can also add a tbsp. of liquid dish soap to help the spray stick to the plants.

Garlic. Garlic has been used in homes to deter pests for many years now. With the use of 1 tablespoon dish soap, 1 head of garlic, 2 cups water and 2 tablespoons oil make them as a puree mixture. Once done allow it to sit overnight and strain the mixture. Place the mixture into a spray bottle and use the ingredient to get rid of pests.

So if you are looking for chemical-free ways to keep pesky ants away then you should try these natural ant deterrents. Then again when getting rid of ants get tough, you may want to use a pest control service to keep ants out of the way.